Cheer Up, Daddy!

Chain Me Up

This chapter is rated R.

I'm kidding.

Chapter Seventeen

(Chain Me Up)

"I don't recognize you anymore," Andy murmured, "and I'm not sure whether or not that's a good thing."

Three hours ago, Andy was hiding behind a haystack with broken twig in his hair and now Andrea was sitting two seats away from him fuming with anger and a crying Alex in his arms asking where her father was. There was a funny story how he came about to this confusing situation, Andy believed it was only appropriate to start his story at this Monday's morning after he decided to have a stake-out outside the barn where his ex-boyfriend was currently working at.

Stalking, this was the word his sister would have used if Andy did actually tell Andrea about what his emergency leave was used for, right next to the words 'unwise' and 'murder'. Still, stake-out sounded cooler even though Andy wasn't dressed for the occasion; his favorite sleeveless tank top with Nirvana printed on the front, a pair of washed up jeans he had for 5 years and that white Playboy sneakers some clingy guy bought him. At least he had the decency to put on a cap and a pair of sunglasses, he doubted they could do much except making him look more suspicious than toning his identity down. The bright side of his bad attempt was nothing could go wrong in his plan because he did not have a plan, Andy was still asking the same question in his mind of why he was doing this. He woke up, groggy mind with a set of heavy pounds of headache coming through like a freight train, got into the shower, dressed for work and right before he made it to the subway, his body turned to the hustling street and hopped into a cab.

And here he was, twenty-five miles away from the city trying to catch a glimpse of the truth he was told two days ago under the impression that Chase did stay and wait for him to say yes while working in a stranger farm. Maybe Andy should tell Andrea about everything, from why he abandoned his hometown and moved to New York so that Andrea could tell him he was being an idiot and proceed to find Chase and stab through his heart with her katana that their father bought her for her 19th birthday. The point was Andy could never mention Chase's existence to his sister even he desperately needed some advice from her, it was suicidal for him and Chase, not that Andy cared about his ex-boyfriend but it would probably be best that he found out what Chase was really up to.

The recordings fucked him up, big time. It was especially hard on him because it was very bad break-up with no closure. No words were said between both of them after that afternoon which lasted to the day in the supermarket. Andy knew that day would come eventually and he thought he was stronger, he is. However, his walls were built to withstand the petty excuses or horrendous backlashes if he ever ran into Chase, not the 10 years confessions that were stored in that tiny device of his. It took him three weeks and three days, those were the times he has taken to process the youthful and cracked voice coming out from the speaker. It would be blind for Andrea not to notice, he really messed his work up in the center a few times, her confrontation at the park actually tempted him to let it all out in the open. All the past memories that led up to the skin he was wearing now, the cool and rational Andrew Walker that no one from his town could recognize him now.

Except Chase, who still remembered Andy at first glance.

Swatting the fly out of his face, Andy knew exactly why he was here, he admittedly wanted to be here. There was a new reason now on why Andy couldn't tell Andrea, the part where Andy was considering of letting Chase back into his life again, even with a huge sign that wrote 'mistake' all over it. Yes, she could have stopped all these fleeting thoughts once and for all. Even if it might involve her locking Andy in the house until she covered her gift with Chase's blood or hire some people from the dark alleys in the city. That's why he spent 90 bucks coming here and hoping to end this fucking thought he had before his sister found out about his past, whichever ends it led him to first. In the meantime, Andy had to trespass into